Going Out: Big Tent Festival

MOST SUMMER MUSIC festivals make bold claims about their eco- credentials, but none comes close to Big Tent in terms of actively trying to make a difference.

The line-up has something for everyone, from the mellifluous musings of King Creosote (pictured) to the raw energy of the Peatbog Faeries, – and getting comic Phil Kay as compere was genius.

It’s in its non-music events, though, that Big Tent marks itself out as a festival with an agenda. There will be talks and debates on everything from fair trade to reforestation, a “carbon clinic” aimed at helping festival-goers reduce their carbon footprint, and, for really serious greenies, a build your own wind turbine course.

If you can only drag yourself away from the music for one “serious” event, make it Alastair McIntosh’s talk, Death by Consumption, on Saturday. If it’s as good as the book its based on, Hell and High Water, it could change your life.